Lucky
by swynford.dilaurentis
Summary: Lost in an image, in a dream, but there's no one there to wake her up. And the world is spinning, and she keeps on winning, but tell me what happens when it stops? AU time jump. It's been five years and Alison is the highest paid actress in Hollywood, a total phenomenon. But without her Mermaid and their friends, what does it matter? She's still living in a big empty house.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: New AU story! Eventual Emison. Let me know what you think and if you'd like it continued! this is mostly just Alison's side and a lot of set up for the rest of the story, the next chapter will focus on the girls side of it and once that's covered the story will start to really move forward.**

The blonde sat with her compact out, painting her lips a striking crimson red she knew the camera's loved. She could hear them screaming her name just outside the door and allowed herself a small smile, _they love me._ Deep down she knew it was a lie, that superficial adoration was nothing like real love. But it was the closest thing she'd ever get.

A deep breath and she was as ready as she ever was, plastering on the beautiful plastic smile that had everyone fooled as she stepped out of her limousine to greet all her adoring fans. She laughed as their roars of worship grew louder at the sight of her. She was stunning and she knew it. Her wardrobe as always, paying homage to the old Hollywood starlets she so aspired to, her dress form fitting and glittering with rhinestones, she pulled her faux fur wrap over her arms to finish the look. She could feel the jaws dropping and eyes popping as they watched her swaying hips. Alison had always had a perfect hourglass figure and as the years went on she only grew more confident in showing it off.

She pretended to be unfazed by the cameras flashing in her eyes, posing for photographers as they called out to her. The blonde had always been a natural when it came to the spotlight, even on the days she wished she could just crawl up in a ball and hide. Today had started out as one of those days but unlike one of the rare occasions her overcommitted manager would allow her to be at piece, she'd had to pull herself together and get through it. _The show must go on_. And the premiere of her eighth feature film for the year wasn't one she could miss.

Most would've been exhausted by the hours Alison was working in order to get through nine films in a year on top of a few guest appearances on television shows and the occasional artsy short film, but she preferred it. Being over worked meant she had very little time alone in her Beverly Hills mansion. It was also what had made her one of the biggest stars on the scene and Hollywood's current highest paid actress in a little under three years. _Accolades that would've made most people happy._

Alison just felt empty.

Though she did enjoy creating the public image as the _mysterious beauty Queen_ taking the world by storm. In an era where even the biggest and brightest starts could be contacted just by tagging and pressing send, Alison had no social media at all and other than red carpets had never even done an interview. For anyone else it would've been career suicide but for _Alison Dilaurentis_ it only made them love her more. _She was untouchable_. The kind of star that hadn't been seen in decades and if that wasn't enough to make people obsessed, her history as the small town girl thought dead coming back and making it big had them completely hooked, hanging out for any scrap of information they could get. And though the blonde had grown a lot from who she was before she'd been buried in her own backyard, that kind of attention, the awe filled stares rather than the glares she'd grown used to back in Rosewood made her feel like she was worth something again.

For that she supposed she had her sister to thank.

After the others had all left for college, Alison had stayed behind to be with Charlotte, enrolling at Hollis to study teaching. The blonde had planned to settle into a quite small town life, one the old her would've _hated._ But after being run out of town in fear of her life, when she was finally able to go home she developed a love for Rosewood she'd never had before. _It felt safe_. Knowing she had somewhere to go every night, a bed to sleep in and a roof over her head she didn't have to worry was going to be ripped away at any second. She wanted to rebuild and put down roots, get married, have children even —- _she'd even picked out names for them_. And she wanted to give back, to try and make up for her wrongs by mentoring kids that were troubled like her and stopping them from making similar mistakes, and though she wouldn't admit it part of it was that she missed High School. After being away for years she had this pull to stay even if it meant being on the other side of the desk.

Charlotte had always hated the idea. Said Ali was wasting her talent, apparently once she'd learned she was alive and started looking for her she'd been able to catch a few of the shows Alison had been in under her _Vivian Darkbloom_ alias. She'd never told the other girls about it, _or anyone really_ , but it was one of the only things that kept her sane in those years on the run. She would perform in clubs and small theatres in New York and she'd adored every second of it, acting gave her something to pour all her emotions into before they drove her crazy. She'd only stopped when she started to build up a fan base of more than the usual dozen people and it became a danger to her cover.

For two years Cece had tried to talk her into pursuing it but Ali had always said no, even the few times she'd been a little more than tempted. Because chasing after that fantasy meant leaving Charlotte behind and she couldn't do that. Her sister had been abandoned too many times by too many people, _they both had_ and now all they had was each other, she wasn't about to throw that away.

Then Charlotte died. An _accidental_ overdose they'd said. For the sake of her sanity, Alison had chosen to believe it, to believe the one person she had in the world hadn't left her alone _intentionally._

No one had come home for the funeral. Her friends had their reasons, though they sent her their sympathies, Jason was off building churches in third world countries and couldn't make it back in time and her father —- _well, he didn't even bother to make an excuse._

So she buried her sister in a half empty church in the company of a few parishioners that had come to be polite and a few of Charlotte's doctor's, Alison realised this wasn't home anymore as much as she tried to make it one. Rosewood didn't love her back. She was completely alone, even the few people in town that didn't outright hate her still wanted nothing to do with her. They all looked at her like she was poison.

 _Maybe she was._

It was then she decided to live out her sister's last wish. She sold half her furniture and packed up the rest, heading out on the redeye flight to LA. Her first few weeks after settling in she went to a few auditions for roles she thought sounded interesting, not expecting anything to come of it. But just as she had years ago in a tiny little theatre lucky to seat 40 people, the blonde knocked it out of the park, leaving producers and directors to marvel at the depth of emotion she could put into just a few words. She put them all under her spell. When she wanted them to laugh, they howled, and when she wanted them to cry, they sobbed, her audience had no say over the matter as she held them captive.

Managers fought tooth and nail to get her as a client until she eventually picked a woman only ten years her senior who's larger than life personality reminded her fondly of how Cece before she knew of their connection. The bleached up blonde was brash and ballsy and more than a little controlling when it came to where Ali went and who she spoke to but it was comforting in a way. _It felt like someone cared._

Something she hadn't felt in a long while now.

It was five years now since her beloved friends had left her behind to start their lives. _Four since any had tried to contact her._ It seemed even her sweet Emily had forgotten about her. Though she didn't know how, _she was everywhere._ Every major film, every award show, billboards in every state, appearances on the most popular tv dramas in the country and _still,_ not a word from the four people that had once meant more to her than anyone. _Still did, much as she wished it wasn't true._

And on the nights she had the energy to think about it she would still shed a few tears, though after all this time it was a shock to her she had any left. Was she really so _awful_ they couldn't stomach one phone call in four years?

 _Except that they had, they just couldn't get through._


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: this chapter briefly covers the girls lives in the five year gap and their view of alison becoming an untouchable rising star. these first two chapters are really just here as a prologue from either side so you can gauge where everyone is coming from, chapter three will be where the story starts to actually take off and there will be a more even division in each chapter between ali and the other liars.**

 **If you have any questions or feedback I'd love to hear your thoughts! thank you to those who reviewed the last chapter I really appreciate it! xx you can also feel free to contact me on tumblr (** **.com** **) if you wanna talk about this / have a prompt or etc you'd like me to write on / just wanna fangirl with me bc i desperately need more PLL friends!**

In five years much had changed for Rosewood's most notorious teen's. Having all moved on to different cities and all sought out counselling to various extents, they were doing all they knew how to to try and leave -A and what happened to them in the past. Spencer went to school at Columbia, Hanna moved to New York to try and make it in the fashion industry, Aria found herself in Boston and Emily in California.

Talking to Ali was hard on the girls for different reasons. For Hanna it was a combination of having never gotten over how her friend treated her before she disappeared and struggling with her own identity when Ali was around, knowing much of who she was now she'd taken on from the other blonde. _Not to mention Ali and Rosewood represented everything she was trying to put behind her in her attempt to start fresh._ With Aria it was thinking about her back in Rosewood bonding with the woman that had tormented them for years. The petite brunette did feel for Charlotte and the suffering she had to endure but her tragic backstory didn't take away the nightmares she was so often plagued with. It didn't undo the trauma of the dollhouse or make her forget all the times she'd nearly died or lost the ones she loved. It was easier to just avoid her than have to think about it. Talking to Alison only got harder and harder for Emily the longer she was at college. Talking to her and not being with her started to weigh on the girl, especially with her college experience not being what she'd hoped for. Despite all her attempts to move on she couldn't deny deep down that she was still hopelessly in love with her best friend and having convinced herself that she'd missed her chance, that Ali didn't see her that way anymore, even hearing her voice was just too painful. For Spencer it was more about being busy and distracted but she spoke to Ali the most out of the girls, texting or calling her whenever she had a break and wasn't completely exhausted. They had always had similar interests and when she needed someone to rant to she knew of their little group Alison was the only one that could keep up with her as she ranted out her frustrations.

When they were notified of Charlotte's funeral, they all knew they should go. That they they should be there to support their friend. But Aria couldn't bring herself to go and pay respects to their tormentor and Hanna, after hearing that Aria was going to make up an excuse not to go decided to do the same. Spencer did her best to try and be there but she had finals the same week and Alison had assured her she understood the need to focus on school. Emily felt terrible that no one else was going and she too was going to pull out but she couldn't do it. She'd just gotten back with and was finally figure out a life for herself that didn't feel like it had some giant gaping _Ali shaped hole_ in the middle of it. She didn't want to throw away all the progress she'd made the way she knew she would the minute she got back and saw Ali in need of comfort. All it would take was a few tears from the blonde and all the walls she'd built around her heart trying to put her first love behind her would come crumbling down.

So, like the others she sent a lame excuse over text and tried not to let the guilt eat away at her when she thought about how she knew if the tables were turned, Alison would never have made go through something like this on her own.

After the funeral Spencer and Aria had sent a few texts to check in on their once fearsome leader but they went unanswered. The smaller brunette hadn't thought much of it, expecting the blonde was probably hurt and likely even a little mad at them though she'd put on her usual mask of indifference when they hadn't made the effort to come home for her.

For a while Spencer had accepted that was probably the case and as school picked up for her and she started yet another internship, she forgot about Alison for a while. Forgot about her social life all together really. But when summer break hit and she finally had a moment to herself, she found herself missing all the late night talks she used to have with the blonde and picking up her phone to see what she was up to, she realised it'd been months since she last spoke to her. Feeling guilty, she went to check on Alison's social media to try and update herself on the blonde's life before giving her a call.

 _But there was nothing_. Her accounts had all been deactivated.

The familiar feeling of worry crept into her bones at the discovery and she cursed herself for not being more diligent in keeping touch, especially after Ali had just lost yet another member of her family. Checking the timezone in Rosewood quickly before calling her, Spencer urged the blonde to pick up under her breath as she picked at her cuticles.

It only rang for a moment before an automated voice informed her that the line had been disconnected and her worry morphed into panic.

 _What reason would there be for Alison to go completely off the grid? She could understand a social media blackout if she was feeling depressed or something but disconnecting her phone number? Was she in trouble again?_

Flashes of Alison being held hostage or tortured or on the run all over again raced through her mind. No, if she were on the run again she'd find one of them wouldn't she? It wasn't like before, they were older now and all spread out, she'd be safe enough to get to one of them if she was in control, Spencer reasoned with herself.

And if she hadn't come to her, her next bet would be _Emily._

".. _Spence?_ Do you have any idea what time it is?" The swimmer asked, still half asleep as she picked up her phone.

" _Emily! Have you seen or spoken to Alison in the last 5 months?! Has she contacted you at all?_ " Spencer's panicked voice rang through the other end and Em shot straight up in bed, instantly wide awake, filled with a familiar sense of dread and anxiety. The fear that something might have happened to the blonde so strong she almost felt like she was going to be sick.

"I haven't spoken to her since before Charlotte. Why? Spence, what's happening, is she okay?!" She asked, doing her best to keep calm as she silenced Paige's attempts to get her to come back to bed.

"I have no idea. I've been so busy I forgot to check in with her for a while and then tonight when I realised how long it's been I tried to get in contact with her but all her social media is shut down and her phone is disconnected."

" _Oh god._ " Emily sighed, instantly fearing the worst after all they'd been through.

"I don't know anything for sure but I don't have a good feeling about this, Em. I figured if she was on the run again and she didn't come here then she'd go to you." She explained and Emily felt her chest tighten. _What if she was on the run, why wouldn't she come to her? Had she made such a mistake not going to the funeral that Ali didn't think she'd want her to?_

She couldn't help but wonder, if only to push away the thought that maybe she couldn't. _Maybe she was dead. Or maybe Charlotte wasn't and she was trapped in some new dollhouse the psycho built just for her._ She couldn't let herself think about that, because if it were true they may not ever find Ali.

"Have you tried Jason? Or her dad?" Emily suggested desperately, hoping the ex queen bee was just trying to drive them crazy with worry to get them back for abandoning her and was really safe with her family.

"My next call."

"I'll call Hanna and Aria and let you know if they've heard anything." Emily offered, though she doubted Alison would seek solace with either friend, and if she did it was unlikely they wouldn't have heard about it.

Spencer thanked her and hung up and they both instantly started dialling the only other people in the blonde's life they thought she might run to.

When they found everyone else was just as clueless about what happened to Alison, Spencer decided it was time to put on her Nancy Drew hat and head back to Rosewood with her friends in toe to see if they could find any clues there.

They had been hoping to find her there wallowing alone in her house drinking at noon or even sleeping with some loser or some other depressing way of avoiding her feelings whilst safe at home but instead they found the Dilaurentis house as vacant as it was in the year after Ali had disappeared.

It was then Hanna and Aria had started to share Spencer and Emily's concern.

After asking around a little they found out Alison had moved out the week of the funeral and left no forwarding address. Hanna had called Mona hoping she could put some of her old reckon skills to use helping them track her down, which given there was no love lost between her and Alison and she still had the suspicion Ali was holding a grudge over the time she spent in jail and was planning something long term revenge.

Eventually she agreed and it took her longer than expected to go through every database she could think of but she couldn't find a thing. It seemed Ali didn't have a cell phone or anything else for that matter in her name, a fact that left them all with a feeling of dread but Spencer had no intention of giving up any time soon, giving Mona a list of possible aliases she could be using, hoping they'd eventually get lucky.

In the meantime the liars couldn't help but ask questions.

 _What the hell was happening? Why hadn't she spoken to any of them? Weren't they past the point of Ali going rogue by now? What if something really bad happened to her? What if she was in the ground somewhere and that's why there's no record of her owning something._

They stayed for almost a month, rummaging through the stuff that was left in her house looking for any sort of clue, any trace of -A. Suddenly wishing they'd come back for the funeral and seen the body so they could stop worrying Charlotte was still gonna pop out at any moment.

When they found nothing and had no where left to look, they decided it was time to stop handle it like their teenage selves would have and enlist some real help. They had been about to head to the police station and report her as a missing person when all their phones went off at once.

Staring at each other with wide panicked eyes, they all paled considerably. _Was it really starting all over again?_

Letting out a collective breath of relief when they realised the text wasn't from a blocked number but rather was a group text from Mona. Though relief quickly turned to confusion as Aria read the text allowed and Hanna reached for the remote.

 _"_ _Turn on your TV."_

Gasping as for the first time in almost a year they saw their blonde friend, they all stared in disbelief.

She was stunning, perhaps the most beautiful than they'd ever seen her and Emily almost felt faint. She was on some promo for an upcoming movie set in the 1920's she was staring in along side Dave Franco. They were setting her up as some sort of femme fatal and she was teasing him, luring him into some sort of trap with an all too familiar trap and that laugh. _That amazing laugh._

" _No fucking way._ " Hanna breathed, the rest sitting in a stunned silence.

"We've been worried sick about her for months thinking she's in some fucking basement somewhere and she's off becoming a star." The blonde went on incredulously, though in truth, she wasn't that shocked. This was exactly the kind of thing she'd have expected of Alison. Not the Alison that had come back from the dead trying to be better but the Alison they'd all fallen for when she first decided to make them her friends. The Ali that _was_ a movie.

"Well at least we know she's okay?" Aria offered after a while. Though she didn't say anything something about the way she laughed left Spencer unsure that was entirely true. It sounded hollow to her ears, it wasn't the same as it once was.

The rest of the night was filled with nothing but talk of Ali, in part excitement and happiness and equal part anger and resentment for the time and energy wasted thinking she was in danger.

In the days after they all returned to their seperate states and for the most part things went back to normal. For some at least. Aria was satisfied in the knowledge that her friend was safe and where she wanted be, Hanna was much the same, her only further attempt to contact her coming when she unsuccessfully tried to drop her name to get ahead in the fashion industry but without having any way to contact her to get a confirmation, she only made herself seem like a lair or a fool. For which she of course blamed Alison being a bitch and _'cutting them off now that she was famous'._

They all organise to go see Ali's movie together in New York when it premiers a few months later and they're surprised by how great she is considering to their knowledge she's never acted before. Though Spencer reminds that if anyone knew how to put on a good show, it was Alison. _She was a born lair and therefore a born actress_.

The overachieving brunette remains suspicious and does her best to make contact with Alison every couple months to no avail. She'd once found her manager but to her frustration, the woman _refused_ to put her through to the blonde which only served to further the youngest Hasting's concern. Emily on the other hand was on a downward spiral, seeing Alison everywhere the more popular she got was like torture. She already saw her every time she closed her eyes and now she was on billboard's and buses and there wasn't anywhere she could go where there wasn't at least one person talking about her. _How great she was, how sexy she was, how much they'd love to have one night with her_. It was driving her _insane._

And then her father had died and it had only gotten worse. It was the only time she'd ever tried to contact Alison herself, she got her manager's number from Spencer hoping she might have more luck. She could hear Alison talking in the background and tried to get the woman, Michelle, to hand over the phone but as Emily raised her voice she'd been promptly hung up on. Spencer had tried to convince her that Ali probably didn't even know it was her calling, that she likely didn't know any of them were calling. That if she knew about Wayne she'd have caught the next flight to Rosewood. But Emily had only retreated further into herself, calling it karma after they'd abandoned her to deal with Charlotte's death alone and citing that if she'd wanted them to be able to reach her she wouldn't have gotten rid of her phone.

In the coming months she distanced herself from her friends, she didn't want to have to explain her excessive drinking or her new habit of ditching all her classes. Her relationship with Paige deteriorated as well, she could barely kiss her without thinking about Alison. She could barely breathe without thinking about Alison and it was killing her.

She tried to pretend that she didn't care about the blonde or her career but she'd seen all of Ali's movies ten times over, she watched every re carpet appearance on repeat trying to gauge whether the rumours of relationships with her co-stars were true. She'd watch her smile coyly as she held hands with different on-screen lovers and Emily tried to imagine herself there. _Tried to imagine it was her hand she was holding._

But none of it felt real. Alison wasn't like a person anymore, _she was a character._ She didn't do interviews or interact with people over social media, she was completely out of reach.

 _Or at least she was._


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Finally starting to get things moving in this story. I was a little worried about the last section and whether it would be confusing with the phone call and the interview going on at the same time but I hopefully it's not too confusing. Let me know what you think! xx**

"Spence?" Emily had barely made it to her phone as she pulled herself out of bed, her eyes still closed and voice still heavy with sleep.

"Did you see they news?!" The over-caffeinated brunette chirped on the other end. "Ali's doing her first interview this Friday night!" She announced without waiting for an answer. Emily wouldn't have been surprised if her rapidly beating heart could be heard trying to escape her chest could be heard through the phone.

 _"_ _Seriously?"_ She asked, trying to seem unaffected, though she was definitely wide awake now.

"Yes! I have no idea why she's decided to start doing it now, but it's everywhere."

"..well thats great for her, I guess but it doesn't have anything to do with me" The former swimmer replied carefully, not wanting to come off like she was some kind of pathetic loser _still_ in love with their blonde starlet.

" _Yeah, sure, you don't care._ " Spencer replied sarcastically, clearly not fooled by the others cool tone. "She's on at 10."

"What show?" Em relented after a moment and she could _feel_ the victorious grin spreading across the brunette's face.

 _"_ _The Bradshaw Late Show. "_

. . .xxxx

"Isn't that what makes me unique? That I _don't_ do this kinda thing?" Alison asks as her manager, Michelle, tells her about the plans she'd made for her to do her first sit down interview.

It wasn't that she was totally against the idea. She was just.. _nervous_. Before the closest thing she'd gotten to an interview had been a few minutes talking to E! on the red carpet. _What if she screwed up? What if they brought up her past? What if they didn't love her as much once the mystery was gone?_

"Sweetie, _unique_ isn't interesting forever. If we don't get you out there a little this whole _mystery card_ we've been holding onto? People are gonna lose interest." Michelle replied bluntly, her words leaving a lasting sting in the blonde's heart. "It's been three years. A lot of your audience are eventually gonna get bored if you're always behind a closed door." She added with a fraction more sympathy, tearing the girl down before she started building her back up in the shape that most suited her, as had become a habit. "But the build up is great! We're gonna promote the shit out it until it's _the_ most watched interview of all time. You're getting 2 million for the interview, but with all the press you'll get after you're gonna be so rich babe, it's sickening."

"Look around, it's already sickening." Ali laughed weakly, gesturing around her grand home filled with the kind of luxuries only royalty could afford.

"You complaining?" She smirked in return, to which the blonde merely offered a slight shrug, too tired for much else. "What's wrong princess, your mansion too big?" Michelle teased again, hoping to get a smile out of her young client.

"Sometimes." The blonde replied, leaving the manager stunned. " _I.._ —-never mind, I'm just kinda lonely that's all." She deduced after a moment, knowing the older woman wouldn't get it. Michelle had been good to her over the last couple years. Taken care of her. Made her feel important. But she wasn't like a real friend, all she ever wanted to talk about was brand and image and _work._ Alison missed having someone to talk to about.. _nothing._

"So I'll get you a date" Michelle shrugged, as though it was an easy fix, and for half a second Ali actually let herself get excited, but when the other spoke again it was quickly extinguished. "Someone big, someone we can use — _Oo!_ A Hemsworth maybe?"

"They're both married." She reminded dryly.

"Well I'm sure when they hear you're interested it won't take much convincing to get them to go grab a quickie divorce."

When all she received in return was an unamused glare, Michelle changed her tune.

"Yeah, you're right. We don't need people thinking you're a home wrecker. What about—"

" _No, never mind._ Just forget I said anything, okay?

"Well if you won't even try then get another dog and cheer up. It's not like you have time for a guy anyway, we have projects lined up for the next 8 months straight."

"So what am I meant to say in this interview." She replied, resting her head on her hands, not even wanting to think about how crazy her schedule was about to be.

"Anything you want, just be your charming little self." Michelle answered with a kiss to Ali's forehead acting the part of the supportive big sister the blonde had really been looking for when she hired her manager. _Though it didn't last long._

"But remember not to give away too much — and if they ask about your creepy little town just try and change the subject, especially if they bring up your sister we don't need to talk about crazy, we want you to stay perfect —- _and sexy_ , remember sexy." She instructed with the sensitivity of a hammer.

"And if they ask about dating anyone — _guys, girls, whatever,_ be really casual and evasive about it, we don't wanna confirm or deny what you're into. Playing on the whole _girl on girl_ thing has always been pretty popular. You know what, I'll just write you up a script it'll be easier." She eventually decided before leaving Ali alone for a few hours while she set about making sure everything was ready for tomorrow night.

. . .xxxx

As they finished her makeup, Alison had her assistant bring her another drink while she tried to pretend she wasn't nervous. From the looks of those around her she was doing pretty well so far but she still had a half hour to kill before she went on and the waiting was driving her insane. She'd been watching interviews of her favourite Hollywood starlet's all day trying to pick up a few tips about how to act and wondering what had happened to the confidence she had as a teenager. When she was young she never worried about if people would like her, she walked into every room thinking they'd either love her or be jealous they weren't her.

Now her emotions were a little more complicated. Murky even.

"Well I hate to admit it, but you look even better in person." Her head whipping around at the familiar and somewhat flirtatious voice, her nerves washed away, replaced by utter shock at the sight in front of her.

" _Mona?_ What're you doing here?" The blonde asked, shooing her people from the room.

"What, an old friend can't visit?" She smirked, sauntering further into the room as Ali's makeup and hair team scurried past her out the door.

"We were never friends." The star reminds with narrowed eyes as she studies the girl in front of her.

" _And yet_ , I'm the only one that's come to see you." She shot back immediately, mild regret seeping into her when the blonde's face drops slightly and she realises she hit a nerve. For a moment she almost feels guilty, knowing that they would have if she hadn't have lied to Hanna years ago about not being able to contact her.

"Look I just wanna make sure you don't say anything about Rosewood." She adds quickly, dropping the mean girl attitude she picked up in high school.

"And if I do?" She bites back, folding her arms across her chest.

Taking a deep breath, Mona tries to calm herself to avoid getting pulled back into old habits, doing her best to explain her situation in hopes the former Queen Bee would see reason. "Look Alison, I'm rising up in the ranks at the moment but if things work out for me I'm about to be a public figure, I don't need the details of what happened getting out —- and if you can't respect that, I'll have a lot of time to get even."

"Is that little _threat_ supposed to scare me?" The blonde's eyes seemed to grow a shade darker, the challenge in her tone almost enough to make Mona physically step back, but she held her ground. It'd been many years now since she'd been Loser Mona and she wasn't about to go back to being that same little nobody that livid in fear of Alison's wrath.

"All I'm asking is for you to keep a secret, it should come naturally to you." She sighed, her voice wavering just slightly.

Ali stared at her for a long moment, analysing her as she thought over what to say next, knowing her manager had already forbid the host to mention Rosewood at all. She could put her out of her misery right now and agree, that'd be the kind thing to do. _But what would be the fun in that?_ And after all Mona had put her through, put her friend's through, it wasn't as if she owed it to her to be particularly merciful.

 _"_ _..so will you?"_

"I haven't decided yet." She smiled, moving to sit back in her chair and touch up her lipstick, looking at the brunette through the mirror as she spoke again. _"I guess you'll just have to watch and find out."_

. . .xxxx

Spencer had told all the girl's about Alison's interview, not that she'd needed to with the press it was getting, but they'd all agreed to watch together at least in spirit. So, with the four-way Skype chat all set up they waited impatiently as the show began.

"I wonder what she's gonna wear." Hanna mused, to which Emily rolled her eyes — though her friend's chatter did help a little to take her mind off the way her stomach was doing backflips. She wasn't even sure if it was nerves or excitement or why she even _cared_ so much, it was just an interview after all, it's not like she was actually gonna get to _talk_ to her.

 _"_ _Look, look, she's about to come out."_ Spencer announced, hushing them all as Bradshaw started to speak.

"And it's my pleasure to introduce, the lovely, the sexy, the amazingly talented, Ms Alison Dilaurentis." The dark haired TV host announced, standing up to greet her. Alison could barely think as she stood at the side of the stage getting lectured by Michelle about what to say and what not to say, she was so distracted she almost didn't hear him introduce her. But ever the consummate professional, she smiled as her manager pushed her toward the stage, looking as happy and carefree as ever.

"Laying it on pretty thick there don't you think, buddy?" Hanna mused aloud, scoffing at the obviously sleazy presenter.

Emily thought the description was pretty accurate, but there was a jealousy coiling in her gut that the man on the screen was about to be sitting next to her _in all her_ _lovely, sexy, amazingly talented glory._

Walking out with a winning smile, she laughed as the audience cheered her all the way over to the couch. " _Wow_ , that's quite the introduction, thank you." Ali laughed, being her usual charming self as she took a seat, crossing one leg over the other. Though on the inside she was so nervous she was starting to feel sick and the heat of the stage lights _weren't helping_ in the slightest.

"Well you certainly deserve it and this is your first interview so, I figure if I'm a little extra nice to you, you'll be more likely to come back." He explained, in what seemed like an attempt to be charming or maybe funny. The blonde almost worried he may strain a muscle if he tried any harder.

 _"_ _Ugh, barf."_ Hanna rolled her eyes, though she was quickly shushed by Emily who wasn't prepared to miss a word Alison said.

"I'll think about it." Ali grinned teasingly as she leaned on the arm of the couch.

"What made you pick this show anyway?" He asked, obviously expecting her to stroke his ego. The star barely held back an eye roll at the question, looking subtly toward her manager for some sort off cue to find her mouthing what looked like _'be funny.'_ Taking that as permission, she turned back to the guy with a slight smirk.

 _"_ _Well,_ Ellen was booked six weeks straight and my manager wanted to get this over with _so..._ " She shrugged the drummer of the show's band in the corner instantly playing a 'ba dum tss' on the snare as the audience laughed.

"I like you, you're funny." He chuckled, though obviously less amused than everyone else. "So have you ever seen this show?"

With the audience seemingly on her side, Alison was tempted to say no and really put this loser through the ringer but she could see Michelle mouthing _'yes'_ in her peripheral vision and instead bit her tongue.

"Why, _thank you_." She teased with an easy smile that seemed to get him back on side. "I do watch your show, it's one of the only things I do watch when I'm not working and I think you're pretty funny yourself."

Whether it was her eyes, that smile or the fact that he'd finally got the compliment he was fishing for, Bradshaw ducked his head momentarily to hide the very obvious red that was creeping over his face. "Aw, well, thank you."

 _"_ _Are you blushing?"_ Ali smirked, almost flirtatiously. Trying to keep up the facade she'd built up in these last few years. The audience expected her to tease and flirt, _it's what they wanted,_ Michelle had made sure to remind her of as much a thousand times over.

"What? No, of course not." He chuckled, his voice laced with sarcasm as he realised there was no point trying to hide it.

"You are!" She pressed, her seemingly childlike amusement getting a rise out of the audience as well.

"You caught me. But you have that affect on a lot of people I've heard, men _and_ women." He replied, changing the subject quickly in a way that made it obvious this is what he'd been waiting to ask since the minute her manager agreed to the interview.

"Why the hell would Ali choose this guy for her first interview? He's a total tool." Hanna scoffed, to which Spencer was quick to ask, " _are we really sure she's the one that picked him?"_

"Guys, shut up!" Emily hushed once more, trying to focus on Ali, though she didn't disagree. She didn't care how popular this loser's show was, the blonde could've done better.

She seemed taken aback at first but quickly recovered, laughing and making a face at the audience when she heard a few whistles. _"I have heard that."_ She answered vaguely, knowing she was gonna get an earful when she got off stage for her momentary slip. It shouldn't have happened, not with how many times they'd been over this in the last few days but in the moment she just..froze. _Just for a second._

"You think there'll be many people blushing for this next film we're seeing you in?" He smirked.

"I mean maybe, I don't know." Ali shrugged, playing heavily on her sultry reputation. "I'm not doing anything awfully _risqué_ but there are a couple moments we're things get kinda sexy with Vanessa and I."

"And that'd be your co-star Vanessa Hudgens?"

"Correct." She nodded, smiling as the audience cheered. " _Right?_ She's gorgeous isn't she?"

"Well she's grown up a lot from her high school musical days." His tone making it obvious what he meant.

 _"_ _Still got a killer voice though."_ Ali replied, in attempt to change the tone from where this perv was trying to take it, hoping he'd catch a clue and ask about her singing debut in the film instead.

"Oh, I'm sure. She has a boyfriend though, right? What does he think about you too getting all _hot and heavy_ on camera?" He pushed, hoping for some sort of sordid details.

The blonde shifted slightly at the question, turning her head back to the direction she'd come from for another signal, though she already knew what she'd want her to do. _Sure enough,_ Michelle stood there adamantly encouraging her to play along, so with her smile slightly more forced as she replied. "Well I don't know for sure what he thinks, we haven't met — _but I'm sure he thinks about it a lot."_

"Who is she looking at?" Spencer snapped in frustration, promptly receiving another shh from the former swimmer, to which she couldn't help but roll her eyes after having had to listen to Emily _poorly_ pretend _not_ to care for over a year.

"Me and him both." Bradshaw laughed. "What about you, you seeing anyone?"

 _"_ _Uh, no."_ She assured quickly, shaking her head. Cursing herself when she saw Michelle losing it behind the curtain and remembered she was meant to say _'maybe'._

"Why the hell not? _Look at you_ , I'm sure everyone you meet is hitting on you."

"Oh, they are." She answered with all the confidence in the world, though if someone were _really_ looking they'd have seen her move away from him ever so slightly. Ali visibly paused just for a second, as if she was debating whether or not she should say more before adding, "But they've got a lot to live up to."

She knew Michelle was going to be _livid_ but she was already pissed off and after Mona showing up in her dressing room before the show she was struck with the urge to reach out and see if _someone_ out there was still listening. _Still cared._

The audience seemed to all quiet down at once, listening with wrapped interest as he pressed for more information about the most private star in Hollywood. "Ahh, still hung up on an ex then? Ex boyfriend, ex girlfriend, what?"

 _"_ _An ex almost."_ She answered vaguely with a smile that didn't nearly reach her eyes.

Emily's breath caught in her throat, the others left speechless as well, all wondering if she was talking about who they _thought_ she was talking about.

"Jeez, those are almost worse. Does anyone even have a shot?"

And for just a moment she actually seemed taken off guard, her eyes falling to her hands in her lap. For just a moment her mask fell and she seemed like a real person, _a person in pain._ But that moment was over as quickly as it came, her luminous disguise falling perfectly back in place as she smiled and shrugged. "I don't know, I guess it'd depend on who was taking a shot."

" _You know, you didn't say whether we're taking girl or guy here_." He reminded pointedly, trying to get as much out of the interview as possible.

Emily was on the edge of her seat listening, feeling more like an actual person rather than some drone than she had since her father had passed.

"You're right, _I didn't._ " She teased, though making it clear she had no intention of revealing anymore.

"Well, you wanna give us a hint?" He pushed, to which she gave another mysterious smirk as she leaned toward him.

 _"_ _Wouldn't you rather wonder?"_ She asked, her voice almost a low purr.

" _No!_ I gotta get this a name so we can call this mystery heart breaker up right now and ask them why the hell they aren't beating down your door." He insisted, slamming a hand on his table jokingly.

 _"_ _Oh God, no."_ Alison replied quickly, panic clear in her eyes at the mere thought of having this idiot call up Emily live on tv with over three million people watching across the nation. "No, I.. _they're much happier without me._ " She settled on after a moment. The blonde wasn't sure yet if she believed that but it seemed like the right thing to say to make sure this issue was dropped.

"That seems pretty hard to believe." He scoffed, giving her a very obvious once over.

 _"_ _Not everyone's a fan."_ Ali shrugged nonchalantly, clearly starting to get fed up with the guys attitude.

"Well, I can tell you for sure everyone in our live audience is so, let's go ahead and play the clip you brought in for us from your new film _An Affair to Remember_ — take a look at this." He redirected quickly, signalling the end of what had been a reasonably painful interview.

" _Em?_ Em, hello? Did you pass out or just forget how to talk?" Hanna asked as the preview played, just as sensitive as ever.

Emily barely heard her with all the thoughts racing through her head. She _had_ to be talking about her, she _had_ to be. _Does this mean they still had a shot? Is that what it meant? Was Ali asking her to come and find her again? That was it wasn't it? There was no way she'd have said something like that if she didn't want to see her again, right? And did she honestly think could ever be happier without her?_

 _"_ _EM!"_

"We have to go see her." She declared, snapping out of her thoughts.

" _What?_ Where? We don't know where she lives remember." Hanna replied instantly, skeptical that they were going to be able to do now what they hadn't been able to do in three years. She knew how desperately Emily must want to see her after that but everything Alison did was kept private. No one knew her number or where she lived or what studio she was working at at any given time.

"We also don't know how to get her on the phone so we _have_ to go there." Emily insisted, ready to buy a plane ticket in the next five minutes, _despite her current financial situation_ and wander around Hollywood knocking on doors until she found the right one.

"But go _where?_ " Hanna emphasised again, decidedly less willing to wander through the streets yelling Ali's name until she magically appeared.

" _Guys!_ we can find out who her next interview is with and buy tickets with backstage passes." Spencer announced, realising this new press tour would be able to give them the in they'd been looking for.

 _"_ _Then let's do it."_


End file.
